UNIVERSITY    OF    CALIFORNIA     AGRICULTURAL   EXPERIMENT  STATION 

_    .  BENJ.    IDE    WHEELER,    President 

COLLEGE  OF  AGRICULTURE  THQWfls  forsyth  HUNT    Dean  _  0irector 

BERKELEY  H.    E.   VAN    NORMAN,   Vice-Director   and   Dean 

University  Farm  School 


CIRCULAR  No.  163 
April.  1917 


SOME    FUNDAMENTAL   CONSIDERATIONS 

AFFECTING  THE  FOOD  SUPPLY  OF 

THE  UNITED  STATES 

Memorandum  Prepared  for  the  Committee  on  Resources 

and  Food  Supply  of  the  State  Council 

of  Defense 


BY 
THOMAS  FORSYTH  HUNT 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  PRESS 
BERKELEY 


UNIVERSITY    OF    CALIFORNIA     AGRICULTURAL    EXPERIMENT  STATION 

~«l    •    w-~w-      ^r.      .~n.~...    -r.tr,.-  BENJ.     IDE     WHEELER,     PRESIDENT 

COLLEGE   OF  AGR  CULTURE 

>-*_     w.       .-.■«.,  w  w.*_  THOMAS    FORSYTH     HUNT,    DEAN  AND   DIRECTOR 

BERKELEY  h.  e.  van  norman,  vice-director  and  dean 

University  Farm  School 


CIRCULAR  No.  163 
April,  1917 


SOME  FUNDAMENTAL  CONSIDERATIONS  AFFECTING 
THE  FOOD  SUPPLY  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES 

MEMORANDUM  PREPARED  FOR  THE  COMMITTEE  ON 

RESOURCES  AND  FOOD  SUPPLY  OF  THE 

STATE  COUNCIL  OF  DEFENSE 

By  THOMAS  FORSYTH  HUNT 


This  memorandum  prepared  for  your  Committee  lias 
been  entitled  "Some  Fundamental  Considerations  Affect- 
ing the  Food  Supply  of  the  United  States." 

It  is  true  that  here  and  there  I  have  added  concrete 
suggestions.  These,  however,  are  merely  incidental,  being 
presented  rather  as  illustrations  of  the  broader  aspects  of 
the  problem,  and  are  not  intended  in  any  way  as  a  com- 
prehensive programme  of  action. 

Any  statements  made  herein  are  predicated  upon  a  three  years' 
war.  If  the  war  lasts  only  three  months  or  continues  ten  years,  then 
the  statements  made  may  need  to  be  materially  modified. 

It  is  a  matter  of  great  satisfaction  to  be  able  to  advise  this  Com- 
mittee that  it  is  impossible  to  starve  the  American  people.  There  is 
no  occasion  in  the  United  States  for  the  disease  known  as  "fear  of 
starvation."  Our  families  cannot  be  brought  to  such  distress  as  is 
known  in  Belgium,  Poland  and  Germany,  and  which  is  feared  in 
England.  This  is  due,  primarily,  to  the  fact  that  the  United  States 
raises  two  crops  that  neither  our  enemies  nor  our  allies  raise  in  any  such 
considerable  quantity.  These  two  crops  are  Indian  corn  and  cotton. 
They  render  the  United  States  impregnable.  We  raise  an  abundance 
of  everything  needed  for  human  consumption  with  certain  exceptions, 
which  I  will  state  later,  and  normally,  in  addition,  produce  consid- 
erable quantities  for  export. 

Broadly  speaking,  Indian  corn  is  used  for  the  production  of  butter 
and  animal  fats,  while  the  cottonseed  which  we  produce  in  growing 
cotton  furnishes  oil  equivalent  to  one-half  of  the  butterfat  produced 
in  the  United  States.     About  one-third  of  all  the  land  plowed  in  the 


4 

United  States  every  year  is  planted  to  Indian  corn.  An  acre  of 
Indian  corn  has  nearly  twice  the  value  of  an  acre  of  wheat  for  human 
consumption.  These  resources  are  in  addition  to  those  of  either  our 
enemies  or  our  allies.  We  are  therefore  unassailable  from  the  stand- 
point of  breadstuff s  and  fat. 

This  does  not  mean  that  serious  consideration  should  not  be  given 
to  the  food  supply,  nor  that  many  people  may  not  find  it  difficult  to 
obtain  money  to  supply  themselves  with  sufficient  food,  but  rather 
that  the  problem  should  be  looked  at  from  the  right  point  of  view. 
It  is  a  problem  on  the  one  hand  of  producing  materials  for  export  in 
order  to  maintain  a  favorable  balance  of  trade,  thus  also  doing  our 
duty  to  our  allies  by  keeping  them  from  starvation,  and  on  the  other 
hand  it  is  a  problem  of  the  proper  distribution  of  supplies  used  for 
domestic  consumption.  Distribution  may  be  greatly  affected  by  our 
military  necessities.  England  has  sought  to  speed  up  her  manufac- 
turing industries,  because  a  nation  cannot  continue  indefinitely  to 
buy  products  without  having  products  of  an  equivalent  value  to 
sell.  For  many  years  foodstuffs  and  cotton  have  served  to  maintain 
a  favorable  balance  of  trade,  although  in  recent  years  manufactured 
products  have  become  more,  and  foodstuffs  less  important. 

I  recommend  to  the  Committee  that  it  express  itself  as  not  favor- 
able to  any  attempt  to  control  production  by  legal  or  military  means. 
The  feeling  on  the  part  of  producers  that  some  authority  will  try  to 
control  production  is  a  sure  means  of  preventing  it.  An  abun- 
dant supply  of  food  is  more  important  than  a  cheap  supply,  and  the 
best  method  of  securing  an  abundant  supply  is  high  prices  to  the 
producer. 

Germany  is  said  to  have  been  successful,  through  its  Food  Dic- 
tator, in  the  distribution  and  control  of  the  use  of  many  food  supplies 
in  the  larger  centers  of  population.  It  has  failed  for  the  most  part 
in  its  attempts  to  control  production.  In  some  cases  its  activities 
are  said  to  have  been  an  important  factor  in  the  serious  shortage  of 
certain  products,  such  as  fat. 

Even  in  the  matter  of  distribution  and  control  of  use,  only  cer- 
tain products  can  be  handled  with  any  considerable  success.  A  crop 
like  wheat  can  be  handled  successfully  for  the  following  reasons : 

1.  It  is  harvested  on  any  one  farm  over  a  very  limited  period. 
Thus  it  can  be  requisitioned  at  the  minimum  of  expense. 

2.  It  is  not  easily  secreted,  among  other  reasons,  because  it  must 
be  fabricated  before  it  can  be  used ;  first,  ground,  and  second,  for  the 
most  part  baked  into  bread. 

3.  Wheat  can  be  stored  indefinitelv. 


4.  When  made  into  bread  its  use  can  be  controlled.  Bread  checks 
are  fairly  effective. 

A  crop  like  potatoes  cannot  be  controlled  successfully  because : 

1.  Potatoes  can  be  secreted.  They  can  be  easily  buried  and  do  not 
require  any  particular  fabrication  for  consumption;  all  that  is  neces- 
sary is  to  drop  them  into  boiling  water.  A  demand  for  80  per  cent  of 
the  farmer's  wheat  crop  can  be  made  reasonably  effective  under 
military  necessity,  but.  a  like  demand  for  potatoes  may  not  secure 
more  than  50  per  cent.  Dean  Barrows  informs  me  that  the  potato 
supply  of  Belgium  disappeared  immediately  upon  German  occupa- 
tion. It  is  easy  enough  to  bury  potatoes  in  such  small  lots  and  in 
out-of-the-way  places,  as  to  make  it  impracticable  for  any  military 
organization  to  requisition  them. 

2.  Potatoes  cannot  be  stored  indefinitely.  Recognizing  that  pota- 
toes were  worth  more  for  human  consumption  than  would  be  the  hogs 
which  were  produced  from  them,  the  German  Government  had  a 
considerable  number  of  the  hogs  of  the  country  butchered,  and  took 
over  the  potatoes  which  would  have  been  required  to  feed  them.  The 
potatoes  rotted,  because  it  was  subsequently  found  that  they  were 
not  needed  for  human  consumption,  and  the  nation  suffered  for  lack 
of  fat  which  the  hogs  would  have  supplied  had  the  Government  not 
disturbed  the  farmers'  normal  procedure. 

A  crop  that  is  produced  daily  cannot  be  economically  controlled. 
There  is  no  way  of  determining  how  many  eggs  a  flock  of  hens  will 
lay  on  a  given  date;  even  by  daily  espionage,  and  even  if  it  were 
possible,  it  would  cost  more  than  the  product  is  worth.  Examples 
might  be  indefinitely  multiplied. 

It  is  a  matter  to  be  considered  whether  a  proper  balance  of  trade 
cannot  be  more  effectively  maintained  by  extending  our  production 
of  barley  than  by  restricting  the  production  of  barley  for  the  purpose 
of  raising  more  wheat.  If  there  be  any  actual  danger  to  California 
because  she  now  imports  considerable  quantities  of  wheat  from  Wash- 
ington, Oregon  and  the  Dakotas,  it  does  not  follow  that  the  solution 
of  the  problem  lies  in  an  increased  production  of  wheat  in  California. 
I  use  this  illustration  to  suggest  a  type  of  inquiry,  rather  than  for 
the  purpose  of  expressing  an  opinion  on  the  subject.  The  best  method 
of  meeting  this  possible  contingency  is  a  matter  to  which  this  Com- 
mittee should  give  serious  attention.  Later  I  will  have  a  suggestion 
to  make. 

Broadly  speaking,  we  may  divide  the  dollar  which  the  consumer 
pays  for  food  products  into  three  parts,  not  necessarily  exactly  equal, 
but  perhaps  nearly  so. 


6 

One  part — let  us  say,  one-third — goes  to  the  producer  of  the 
product;  one-third  goes  to  the  distributor,  including  the  transporta- 
tion companies  and  the  wholesalers ;  and  one-third  goes  to  the  retailer. 
The  last  one-third  is  due  largely  to  the  service  which  the  consumer 
demands,  and  for  which  he  insists  on  paying.  So  far  as  we  have  the 
evidence  before  us,  the  German  Government's  success  in  handling  the 
food  supply  has  consisted  largely  in  reducing  the  cost  of  retail  dis- 
tribution, and  in  controlling  the  amount  of  food  which  people  were 
permitted  to  eat.  I  think  I  may  reassert  without  any  fear  that  we 
shall  never  in  this  country  be  compelled  to  limit,  by  legal  or  military 
action,  the  amount  of  food  consumed ;  but  I  believe  it  would  be  en- 
tirely possible  as  a  military  necessity,  to  reduce  the  service  which  is 
now  rendered  by  the  retailer,  and  to  eliminate  from  that  service  for 
war  purposes  a  considerable  body  of  our  citizens.  I  suggest  that  your 
Committee  give  some  consideration  to  this  aspect  of  the  problem. 

Food  for  human  consumption  can  be  segregated  somewhat  em- 
pirically, yet  quite  significantly,  into  five  classes: 

(1)   Protein  foods,  such  as  meat,  fish,  fowl,  eggs,  cheese, 
beans  and  nuts;    (2)   Fats,  including  the  body  fat  of 
animals  (pork,  beef,  and  mutton),  butter,  and  vegetable 
oils,   such  as  olive  and  cottonseed   oils;    (3)    Starchy 
foods,    sometimes    popularly    referred    to    as    "bread 
foods,"  such  as  wheat,  rye,  barley,  rice,  and  potatoes; 
(4)  Fruits  and  vegetables;   (5)  Sugar.     In  this  group 
for   convenience   I   include   chocolate,   tea   and   coffee, 
because  all  of  the  products  comprised  in  it  are  im- 
ported wholly  or  in  part. 
It  is  important,  as  Germany  has  found  to  her  sorrow,  to  maintain 
the  proper  balance  between  these  five  groups  of  foods.     I  would  sug- 
gest, therefore,  as  each  requires  somewhat  separate  consideration,  that 
during  the  conference  today,  the  Committee  appoint  a  subcommittee 
of  two  or  three  members  for  each  group ;  that  during  the  luncheon 
recess  each  committee  formulate  concrete  suggestions  concerning  the 
particular  class  of  foods  to  which  it  has  been  assigned,  and  that  these 
reports  be  made  the  first  order  of  business  on  reassembling  in  the 
afternoon. 

Professor  Jaffa  has  prepared  for  me  a  table*  showing  the  value 
at  the  point  of  consumption  of  suitable  foods  for  the  average  family 
of  five  persons,  based  on  present  prices.  These  I  have  classified  into 
five  groups  as  above  suggested : 


This  table  is  given  in  detail  on  page  12. 


Pood  Total  Expended  per  family  Total 

Materials  Ave.  Min.  Ave.  Max.  Ave.  Min.  Ave.  Max. 

Protein 

Milk  $68.40  $87.30 

Meat    136.80  194.00 

Eggs    28.50  72.75 

Beans    2.10  2.40             $235.80             $356.45 

Fats 

Butter   29.75  50.75 

Oil  and  fat 17.00  29.00                 46.75                 79.75 

Starchy  Foods 

Flour  22.80  24.25 

Cereals  12.00  13.58 

Macaroni    2.80  2.80 

Eice  2.10  2.40 

Potatoes    28.50  38.80                 68.20                 81.43 

Fruits  and  Vegetables 

Fruits    28.50  48.50 

Green  vegetables  27.36  34.92                 55.86                 83.42 

Sugar 

Sugar    19.00  27.20 

Tea    and    coffee 10.20  21.90                 29.20                 49.10 

$435.81  $650.55 

Per  person  per   day $0,238  $0,356 

Sundries,  including  such  articles  as  chocolate,  corn 
starch,    baking   powder,    sago,    gelatine,    flavor- 
ings,  spices  and  all   dainties  and  extras,   have 
been  omitted. 
The  family  consists  of  father  and  mother,  son  16,  daughters  10  and  3  years 
respectively. 

I  think  it  is  fairly  obvious  from  this  table  that  the  public  dis- 
cussion of  our  food  supplies  has  been  placing  the  emphasis  in  the 
wrong  places. 

Attention  is  also  called  to  the  fact  that  while  quantities  of  the 
first  four  classes  of  foods  are  produced  for  export,  sugar,  in  the 
fifth  class,  comes  principally  from  Cuba  and  Hawaii.  Since  sugar 
is  produced  continuously  throughout  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
year,  it  has  not  been  necessary  to  store  large  supplies,  as  is  the 
case  with  wheat,  whose  harvesting  season  does  not  cover  over  three 
months.  There  is  therefore  in  the  United  States  a  comparatively 
small  supply  of  sugar  at  the  present  time.  If  an  enemy  nation  could 
get  control  of  Cuba  and  Hawaii,  the  United  States  would,  in  a  com- 
paratively few  weeks,  be  without  sugar.  Private  advices  from  Cuba 
indicate  that  the  revolutionists  have  destroyed  millions  of  dollars 
worth  of  sugar,  and  I  am  informed  that  this  is  the  cause  of  the 
recent  advance  in  the  price  of  sugar. 


8 

While  I  do  not  assume  that  our  enemies  are  going-  to  get  control 
of  these  sugar-producing  islands,  the  possible  contingency  I  feel  to  be 
one  of  the  most  important  questions  before  the  United  States  at  the 
present  moment.  It  would  obviously  be  difficult  to  store  sugar,  either 
through  public  or  private  agencies,  without  seriously  disturbing  trade. 
Nevertheless,  the  matter  should  be  very  carefully  considered,  and  the 
state  should  be  advised  by  importers  who  understand  the  sugar  trade, 
just  how  far  it  is  possible  to  go  in  providing  against  the  contingency 
just  suggested.  While  a  serious  shortage  of  sugar  is  a  calamity  which 
might  temporarily  befall  this  nation,  it  is  a  condition  which  could 
not  be  made  permanent.  To  begin  with  we  can  produce  indefinitely 
quantities  of  glucose  from  Indian  corn.  Further,  with  sugar  at  10 
cents  per  pound,  vast  acreages  in  the  United  States  could  and  would 
be  profitably  used  in  raising  sugar  beets  if  it  were  believed  that  high 
prices  would  continue.  Moreover,  sweet  sorghum  is  a  crop  that  can 
be  raised  extensively  and  with  ease.  The  culture  of  sweet  sorghum 
can  be  much  more  easily  extended  than  the  culture  of  sugar  beets. 
More  than  thirty  years  ago  the  technical  methods  of  producing  sugar 
from  sorghum  were  definitely  worked  out,  but  they  cannot  be  used 
profitably  with  sugar  at  5  cents  per  pound.  The  cost  of  producing 
sugar  from  sweet  sorghum  at  the  present  time  is  determinable.  If 
it  were  known  in  April  that  there  was  an  emergency  that  required 
it,  it  would  be  possible  to  plant  sorghum  in  May  in  unlimited  areas, 
and  to  build  factories  while  the  crop  was  growing.  If,  however,  the 
emergency  were  not  perceived  until  September,  it  would  take  four- 
teen months,  instead  of  seven  months,  to  deliver  the  sugar.  In  other 
words,  unlimited  quantities  of  sugar  could  be  produced  in  this 
country  if  it  became  necessary,  but  we  shall  doubtless  prefer  to 
secure  the  bulk  of  our  sugar  from  neighboring  islands  at  5  cents  or 
6  cents  per  pound,  than  to  produce  it  from  sweet  sorghum  or  even 
from  sugar  beets  at  10  cents  per  pound. 

While  I  expect  that  it  will  never  become  necessary,  the  condition 
concerning  sugar  in  the  United  States  and  that  concerning  wheat  in 
California  make  it  desirable,  if  it  is  legally  possible,  to  pass  a  law 
giving  the  Governor  of  California  power  to  take  over  and  store  food 
products  when  he  may  deem  it  necessary,  and  to  issue  certificates 
of  sale,  bearing  4  per  cent  interest,  against  these  products,  the  time 
of  redeeming  the  certificates  of  sale  being  at  the  option  of  the  state. 

This  is  not  greatly  different  in  effect  from  the  practice  of  grain 
elevators  in  the  central  west,  which  issue  certificates  of  storage  that 
the  farmer  may  discount  at  the  bank. 

It  is  possible  that   certain   contingencies  may   arise   that   would 


make  the  power  suggested  to  be  granted  the  Governor  of  great  value, 
and  if  the  contingency  never  arose,  the  passage  of  the  law  could  do 
no  harm. 

No  admonition  is  necessary  to  the  farmer  to  grow  materials  so 
long  as  he  understands  which  are  likely  in  the  long  run  to  bring  him 
the  best  returns  for  his  labor.  It  may  be  possible,  however,  for  the 
farmer  to  misjudge  the  future  needs  and  demands.  In  fact,  it  is 
not  possible  for  any  human  being  to  judge  accurately.  Anyone  who 
could  do  so  successfully  might  easily  become  many  times  a  millionaire. 
This  idea  may  be  illustrated  by  the  insistent  demand  for  the  plant- 
ing of  potatoes  and  other  vegetables.  Most  of  the  effective  effort 
for  the  production  of  food  for  human  consumption  during  the  season 
of  1917  in  California  has  long  ago  been  discounted.  What  the  public 
does  not  understand,  and  what  perhaps  many  farmers  do  not  realize 
is  that  as  an  emergency  measure  what  is  needed  is  the  extension  of 
forage  crops  as  food  for  domestic  animals.  Such  crops  as  milo, 
feterita,  Egyptian  corn,  sweet  sorghum,  and  Sudan  grass  should  be 
extensively  planted.  They  are  crops  in  which  a  minimum  of  effort 
gives  a  maximum  of  result.  There  has  not  been  a  season  in  years, 
I  am  credibly  informed,  in  which  cattle  and  sheep  in  California 
have  Come  through  the  winter  in  such  poor  condition  as  in  the  pres- 
ent one.  Scarcity  of  winter  food,  and  the  cold,  backward  spring, 
entailing  scanty  pastures,  are  among  the  chief  causes. 

Already  the  College  of  Agriculture  has  publicly  urged  upon  the 
farmers  the  consideration  of  these  crops  above  mentioned.  Quite 
by  accident,  as  far  as  this  emergency  is  concerned,  the  College  of 
Agriculture  has  issued  an  exhaustive  bulletin  on  Sudan  grass,  which 
is  now  being  distributed,  and  which  will  reach  over  30,000  persons. 
It  has  in  hand  manuscripts  on  grain  sorghums  and  on  sugar  beets, 
which  will  soon  be  distributed. 

Land  that  is  under  irrigation  will  without  doubt  be  fully  used. 
It  may  be  desirable,  however,  to  urge  upon  farmers  the  interpolat- 
ing of  beans  and  grain  sorghums  in  young  irrigated  orchards.  It  is 
possible  that  the  trees  may  be  slightly  affected  by  this  procedure, 
but  the  emergency  warrants  it,  even  from  the  standpoint  of  the 
farmer's  personal  interest. 

In  order  to  farm  successfully  great  areas  of  California  land  not 
under  irrigation,  it  requires  looking  ahead  two  years.  For  this 
season  the  die  is  largely  cast,  and  to  some  extent  even  for  the  year 
to  follow.  Every  possible  preparation  should  be  made  to  put  suit- 
able unoccupied  land  into  condition  to  grow  crops  next  year,  and 
the  year  aftrr.     Inasmuch  as  in  many  cases  two  years  must  elapse 


10 


^S-882tooo 


11 

before  crops  can  be  obtained,  I  recommend  to  the  Committee  that 
it  give  consideration  to  the  possibility  of  financing  the  farmer  who 
must  wait  two  or  more  years  for  his  returns. 

Keeping  in  mind  that  farm  products  during  the  next  three  years 
only  are  under  consideration,  the  chief  factors  in  the  quantity  pro- 
duced are  the  weather  and  the  labor  supply.  A  glance  at  the  chart 
is  sufficient  to  emphasize  the  influence  of  weather  conditions.  Never- 
theless, the  labor  situation  may  become  acute.  As  an  illustration, 
the  Navy  Yard  at  Mare  Island  recently  advertised  for  an  unlimited 
supply  of  labor  at  $2.50  per  day.  The  only  requirement  was  the 
ability  to  lift  a  150-pound  sack.  This  immediately  sets  a  price  on 
unskilled  labor  in  California.  This  Committee  should  carefully  con- 
sider whether  it  would  be  justified  in  requesting  that  farmers  and 
farm  laborers  do  not  enlist  for  military  service,  just  as  it  is  under- 
stood that  England  has  urged  her  skilled  artisans  to  work  in  the 
munition  factories  rather  than  go  to  the  trenches.  There  are  other 
aspects  of  the  labor  problem  which  this  Committee  may  wish  to 
consider,  as,  for  example,  the  month  or  months  of  the  peak  load  of 
labor  for  any  community;  the  possible  use  of  soldiers  while  in  train- 
ing to  meet  such  peak  load;  the  possible  organization  of  bands  of 
laborers  for  the  same  or  similar  purposes,  and  the  better  organization 
of  labor-saving  machinery,  such  as,  for  example,  the  itinerant  rental 
of  State-owned  tractors  and  attendant  machinery. 

I  am  not  advising  that  these  things  be  done,  but  I  am  suggesting 
that  they  are  very  pertinent  subjects  for  the  consideration  of  your 
Committee. 

Without  stopping  to  summarize  the  fundamentals  hastily  and 
crudely  outlined,  I  desire  in  closing  to  state  the  service  which  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  of  the  University  of  California  is  in 
a  position  to  render  immediately,  if  the  Committee  considers  it  desir- 
able. By  co-operating  with  the  county  organizations  which  it  is 
understood  the  State  Council  of  Defense  purposes  to  create,  or  with- 
out such  organizations,  it  would  be  possible  to  hold  meetings  in  each 
county  in  the  State,  where  public  hearings  could  be  held  as  to  exist- 
ing conditions,  and  at  which  any  recommendations  which  this  Com- 
mittee may  wish  to  formulate  can  be  discussed  with  the  farmers  in 
attendance.  The  importance  of  such  hearings  will  obviously  depend 
upon  the  character  and  concreteness  of  the  recommendations  which 
the  Committee  wishes  to  make  at  this  time,  and  the  character  of  the 
information  it  desires  to  secure  as  the  basis  for  future  action.  The 
Department  of  Agriculture  has  the  machinery  by  which  this  can  be 


12 

accomplished  in  every  county  in  the  State  in  twelve  days.     If  it  is 
worth  doing,  the  sooner  it  is  done  the  better. 

I  presume  that  the  deliberations  of  this  Committee  will  fall  into 
three  categories: 

1.  What  advice  the  Committee  desires  at  this  time  to  give  to  the 
public. 

2.  What  legislation  it  desires  to  suggest  to  the  State  Council  of 
Defense. 

3.  What  further  inquiries  it  desires  to  make  or  have  made,  as  the 
basis  for  future  action. 

If  in  any  of  these  matters,  or  in  any  other  way  the  165  officers 
of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  of  the  University  of  California  can 
aid  your  Committee  they  are  entirely  at  your  disposal. 


13 


STAPLE  FOODS  FOE  AN  AVEEAGE  FAMILY  OF  FIVE  PEESONS 

Pounds  per  family  Total  expended  per 

per  year  Price  per  family 

Food  materials                     Min.  Max.  pound  Min.  Max. 

Milk    1368  1746  $0.05  $68.40  $87.30 

Butter    85  145  .35  29.75  50.75 

Meat  684  970  .20  136.80  194.00 

Oil   and   fat 85  145  .20  17.00  29.00 

Eggs  114  291  .25  28.50  72.75 

Beans  21  24  .10  2.10  2.40 

Flour    456  485  .05  22.80  24.25 

Cereals  171  194  .07  12.00  13.58 

Macaroni   28  28  .10  2.80  2.80 

Eice    42  48  .05  2.10  2.40 

Potatoes 570  776  .05  28.50  38.80 

Green  vegetables  684  873  .04  27.36  34.92 

Fruits    571  970  .05  28.50  48.50 

Sugar   233  340  .08  19.00  27.20 

Tea  and  coffee 34  73  .30  10.20  21.90 

Sundries    ....                   


Totals    $435.81         $650.55 

Per   person  per   day $0,238  $0,356 

Notes. — Sundries  include  such  articles  as  chocolate,  corn  starch,  baking 
powder,  sago,  gelatine,  flavorings,  spices,  and  all  dainties  and  extras.  The  family 
consists  of  father  and  mother,  son  16,  daughters  10  years  and  3  years  respec- 
tively. 


STATTON   PUBLICATIONS   AVAILABLE  FOR   FREE   DISTRIBUTION 


REPORTS 

1897.      Resistant  Vines,   their  Selection,  Adaptation,   and  Grafting.      Appendix  to  ViticuUural 
Report  for  1896. 

1902.  Report  of  the  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  for  1898-1901. 

1903.  Report  of  the  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  for  1901-03. 

1904.  Twenty-second  Report  of  the  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  for  1903-04. 

1914.  Report  of  the  College  of  Agriculture  and  the  Agricultural   Experiment   Station,   Jul  v. 

1913-June,   1914. 

1915.  Report  of  the  College  of  Agriculture  and  the  Agricultural   Experiment   Station.   .Ttilv 

1914-June,   1915. 

BULLETINS 


No. 
168. 


.78. 


185. 

203. 

207. 
208. 
212. 
213. 
216. 


225. 
230. 
241. 
242. 
244. 
246. 


24  9. 
250. 
251. 


No 
65. 
69. 

70. 

76. 
82. 

107. 

108. 
109. 


113. 
114. 
115. 
117. 

118. 
121. 

124. 
126. 
127. 
128. 
129. 
130. 
131. 
132. 

133. 
134. 
135. 


Observations   on    Some   Vine   Diseases 

in   Sonoma  County. 
Tolerance  of  the  Sugar  Beet  for  Alkali. 
Mosquito  Control. 
Report    of    the    Plant    Pathologist    to 

July   1,    1906. 
Report  of  Progress  in  Cereal  Investi 

gations. 
Report    of    the    Plant    Pathologist    to 

July  1,  1909. 
The  Control  of  the  Argentine  Ant. 
The  Late  Blight  of  Celery. 
California  White  Wheats. 
The   Principles  of  Wine-making. 
A  Progress  Report  Upon  Soil  and  Cli 

matic    Factors   Influencing  the   Com- 
position of  Wheat. 
Tolerance  of  Eucalyptus  for  Alkali. 
Enological  Investigations. 
Vine  Pruning  in  California,  Part  I. 
Humus   in  California   Soils. 
Utilization  of  Waste  Oranges. 
Vine   Pruning  in   California,    Part  II. 
The  Economic  Value  of  Pacific   Coast 

Kelps. 
Stock-Poisoning  Plants  of  California. 
The  Loqnat. 
Utilization  of  the  Nitrogen  and  Organic 

Matter    in    Septic    and    Imhoff   Tank 

Sludges. 


No. 
252. 
253. 

254. 
255. 
256. 
257. 
261. 

262. 

263. 

264. 
265. 


270. 


271. 
272. 
273. 

274. 


CIRCULARS 

No. 
136. 
137. 
138. 
139. 


The  California   Insecticide  Law. 

The   Extermination    of   Morning-Glory. 

Observations    on    the    Status    of    Corn 

Growing  in   California. 
Hot  Room   Callusing. 
The     Common     Ground     Squirrels     of 

California.  140. 

Spraying  Walnut  Trees  for  Blight  and 

Aphis    Control. 
Grape  Juice.  141. 

Community  or  Local  Extension   Work 

by  the  High  School  Agricultural  De  142. 

partment. 
Correspondence  Courses  in  Agriculture  .  143. 

Increasing  the  Duty  of  Water. 
Grafting  Vinifera  Vineyards.  144. 

The    Selection    and    Cost    of    a    Small  145. 

Pumping  Plant. 
The  County  Farm  Bureau.  146. 

Some    Things    the    Prospective    Settler 

Should  Know.  147. 

Alfalfa   Silage  for  Fattening  Steers.  148. 

Spraying  for  the  Grape  Leaf  Hopper.  149. 

House  Fumigation.  150. 

Insecticide  Formulas.  151. 

The  Control  of  Citrus  Insects.  152. 

Cabbage  Growing  in   California. 
Spraying  for  Control  of  Walnut  Aphis.  153. 

When      to      Vaccinate      against      Hog 

Cholera.  154. 

County  Farm  Adviser. 

Control   of  Raisin    Insects.  155. 

Official  Tests  of  Dairv  Cows.  156. 


Deterioration   of  Lumber. 

Irrigation  and  Soil  Conditions  in  the 
Sierra   Nevada   Foothills,    California. 

The  Avocado  in  California. 

The  Citricola  Scale. 

Value  of  Barlev  for  Cows  Fed  Alfalfa. 

New  Dosage  Tables. 

Melaxuma  of  the  Walnut,  "Juglans 
regia." 

Citrus  Diseases  of  Florida  and  Cubii 
Compared  with  Those  of  California. 

Size  Grade  for  Ripe  Olives. 

The  Calibration  of  the  Leakage  Meter. 

Cottony  Rot  of  Lemons  in  California. 

A  Spotting  of  Citrus  Fruits  Due  to  the 
Action  of  Oil  Liberated  from  the  Rind 

Experiments  with  Stocks  for  Citrus. 

Growing  and  Grafting  Olive  Seedlings. 

Phenolic  Insecticides  and  Fungicides. 

A  Comparison  of  Annual  Cropping,  Bi- 
ennial Cropping,  and  Green  Manures 
on  the  Yield  of  Wheat. 

Feeding  Dairy  Calves  in  California. 

Commercial  Fertilizers. 

Preliminary  Report  on  Kearney  Vine- 
yard Experimental  Drain. 

The  Common  Honey  Bee  as  an  Agent 
in  Prune  Pollination. 


Melilotus  Indica. 
Wood  Decay  in  Orchard  Trees. 
The  Silo  in  California  Agriculture. 
The   Generation   of   Hydrocyanic   Acid 

Gas  in  Fumigation  by  Portable  Ma 

chines. 
The  Practical  Application  of  Improved 

Methods  of  Fermentation  in  Califor 

nia  Wineries  during  1913  and  1914. 
Standard   Insecticides   and  Fungicides 

versus  Secret  Preparations. 
Practical  and  Inexpensive  Poultry  Ap 

pliances. 
Control   of    Grasshoppers    in    Imperial 

Valley. 
Oidium  or  Powdery  Mildew  of  the  Vine. 
Suggestions  to  Poultrymen  concerning 

Chicken  Pox. 
Jellies    and    Marmalades    from    Citrui 

Fruits. 
Tomato  Growing  in  California 
"Lungworms" 

Lawn  Making  in  California. 
Round  Worms  in  Poultry. 
Feeding  and  Management  of  Hogs. 
Some  Observations  on  the  Bulk  Hand 

ling  of  Grain  in  California. 
Announcement  of  the  California  State 

Dairy  Cow  Competition,  1916-18. 
Irrigation    Practice   in   Growing   Small 

Fruits  in  California. 
Bovine  Tuberculosis. 
How  to  Operate  an  Incubator. 


